Mouw's Musings: Understanding the "Prosperity Gospel." This post is about Africa's prosperity gospel, but I wanted to highlight Dr. Mouw's observations about "the flaw of the excluded middle." He is writing about how the prosperity gospel plays a role that often isn't played by more intellectualized forms of religion.
What I would add to this wise counsel is that we need to do the theological homework that will address these concerns more effectively. For me, the case was put in a challenging manner by my former colleague, the late Paul Hiebert, who published an important essay, “The Flaw of the Excluded Middle,” in the early 1980s in the journal Missiology. Hiebert recounted his experience as a missionary anthropologist with recent converts to Christianity in a village culture in India. When these folks would face difficult challenges relating to fertility, family crises, or economic threats, they would often turn to the shaman for help. Hiebert realized that he did not have the theological resources to address their practical concerns. He had a “high” theology of God, salvation, and human destiny. He also had a scientific grasp of empirical reality. But he was lost when dealing with a middle range of issues: How can I avoid accidents? How can I win my husband back? Who can help me deal with my child’s illness? How can I find enough food for our next meal?
And I would suggest that this is precisely the problem with Christians in American culture, except instead of turning to a shaman, we turn to Oprah, Dr. Phil, or some member of the expertocracy. Most of the American church does not help with answers to questions from the middle. Is it any wonder why pentecostal churches are growing while mainline, evangelicals, and emerging types are off on their head trips?
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